I’d done some napkin math when planning the talent builds in my guide, but I decided to formalize it to see what interesting data I could find.The chart is below. (I’d recommend using the highlighted %Loss/Pt numbers; this indicates how much DPS is lost from a build per point removed.) I’ll be using some of this in an upcoming post defending the viability of hybrid talent builds.

Thoughts:

Predatory Strikes/Stampede is pretty crappy for a static fight, as expected. Believe it or not, 1/2 Stampede actually showed up as a DPS LOSS, which seems nonsensical but tracks with my anecdotal observations.

I’ve included Master Shapeshifter, even though it’s not accessible at 80. It’s not very valuable since it essentially takes three points to get.

Blood in the Water is weaker than I expected for a lower tier talent.

Feral DPS Talent Value (Lvl 80)

%Gain/Pt

%Loss/Pt

Berserk

3.49%

-5.33%

Primal Fury

2.94%

-2.73%

Heart of the Wild

2.14%

-2.71%

Endless Carnage

1.79%

-2.30%

King of the Jungle

2.03%

-2.16%

Fury Swipes

1.53%

-1.94%

Rend and Tear

1.15%

-1.47%

Blood in the Water

1.33%

-1.13%

Master Shapeshifter (incl. NS, not avail at 80)

0.95%

-0.68%

Feral Aggression

0.08%

-0.54%

Stampede

0.44%

-0.31%

Primal Madness

0.18%

-0.21%

Predatory Strikes (w/Stampede)

0.50%

-0.05%

(Methodology: Using Mew and the Yawning profile, I calculated a baseline DPS number. I then removed each talent individually, leaving all other data constant, and reran the DPS calculation. MS was not included. I then divided the DPS loss by the number of talent points to determine its value to the build. To control for the value of synergistic effects, I also did a calculation the opposite way, by starting with no talents and adding them individually, but this information is less useful for making marginal talent choices. Margin of Error is roughly 0.1%.)